Among other things, Baz Luhrmann's unexpectedly fabulous EPIC: Elvis Presley in Concert may turn out to be this year's most powerful pop music historical corrective. Forget what you think you know and feel about Elvis's fabled and supposedly ill-fated Vegas years, viewed by many as the sad twilight and sell-out phase of a proto-rock ‘n’ roll legend. Here is a persuasive alternative view, with a bounty of evidence to prove its case.
There is Elvis on the Strip, with his jumbo sideburns, gaudy costumes and spangly shades predating Sir Elton’s collection, and his natural way of working his dimply charm and freely kissing the ladies — on the mouth — during his showroom spectacles. But more importantly, what he delivers in those showrooms is the work of an artist with a great passion and gift for what he does, while locking in with his ace band (including the great Telecaster master James Burton, who gets in some tasty licks during the film).
Tellingly, no attention is paid to the king’s unseemly demise at Graceland in 1977. Tabloid-style muck is off the table here: The focus is on a great American artist’s work, in living color and begging for our love and reappraisal.